More Than Getting Older

My pastor husband made me ask myself a startling question in his sermon on Sunday.  It caused me to pause.  It caused me some discomfort.  It caused me to keep asking it of myself until I had an answer.

Am I growing in maturity?

I am obviously growing older.  My ability to bounce back from a night spent sleeping on the floor testifies of that.

But, am I maturing?  And much more specifically, am I maturing in my spiritual life?

I like to think of myself as a mature Christian.  I have for years now.  But, that simple question caused me to dig deep and sincerely evaluate my own growth.  It's not enough to be a "mature" Christian.  I need to be a "maturing" one.

And over the last three days, the Lord has been gracious to help me answer the question.  Yes, I am maturing.  But, I could be maturing faster if I would allow Him more room to work.  And that's going to cost me something.

It's going to cost a little more self-honesty.

It's going to cost some humility.

It's going to cost some time.

Because there are some trouble spots in my Christian walk.  Some places that I keep having to "go around the bush" again and again.  Some areas that I find myself repenting and starting over once more instead of being able to walk a new road, blaze a new trail in my spiritual thinking.

And it's these spots that need my honesty, some humility, and some time.

When I look back over my spiritual "maturing," I can see I've grown the most when I had an actual plan for growth.  When I submitted my thoughts to the Lord, received His response in return, and we hashed out a new way of looking at something together.

It's this pattern I want to see reproduced in my life.  This constant communication with the One who cares about my growth because of His great love for me.

That's why I'll be talking to Him about my trouble spots this week.  And coming up with a plan for growth. 

Because when I'm growing in maturity, I'm looking more and more like who I was born to be, and less and less like the flesh I won't settle for.

"Meanwhile, Jesus kept on growing wiser and more mature, and in favor with God and his fellow man."   - Luke 2:52 (ISV)